Arsenal score upgraded deal with Konami and PES

October 11 – Arsenal have turned their in-game license agreement with video game PES (Pro Evolution Soccer) into an official partnership with the game’s maker Konami Digital Entertainment.

The new deal with Konami gives them greater access to Arsenal’s first team squad and an increased package of licensing and promotional rights. Included is access to the club’s social media platforms. No value or term was given for the new partnership.

An important new aspect of the deal is that KONAMI will use its 3D scanning systems to capture facial and physical data from the full first-team squad for inclusion in the PES 2018 game.

The agreement builds on the success of last year’s in-game license agreement between the club and Konami that saw players featuring in the PES (Pro Evolution Soccer) series and other Konami football titles.

As an official partner of the club, Konami will now enjoy greater access to the first-team squad and Emirates Stadium. Konami will also have extensive licensing and promotional rights including access to the club’s social media platforms and tickets to matches at Emirates Stadium.

Konami will use its 3D scanning systems to capture facial and physical data from the full first-team squad for inclusion in the PES 2018 game. This will enable developers to create more highly detailed environments and facial animation. Konami have secured a similar agreement with Liverpool.

“Our working relationship with Konami to date has been extremely successful from a licensing perspective and we are delighted to extend this and welcome them as an official partner,” said Vinai Venkatesham, chief commercial officer at Arsenal. “We look forward to getting started in the next phase of our relationship with Konami and creating some fun and exciting content that both Arsenal and wider football fans will enjoy.”

Konami recently extended its agreement with UEFA’s Champions League as it battles to take on FIFA’s game from EA Sprots. The PES League World Tour 2018 is the official Champions League global eSports competition to determine the best player of PES 2018.
This season’s PES League will feature qualifier rounds held worldwide scale until spring 2018. The finalists will be the top ranked players based on points acquired in each competition and will compete head-to-head in the summer 2018 World Finals.

Jonas Lygaard, Senior Director – Brand and Business Development for Konami Digital Entertainment B.V. added: “We are determined to work with the best clubs football has to offer and are delighted to partner with Arsenal. The relationship we formed last year has gone from strength to strength, most notably when Emirates Stadium played host to the PES League World Final. As such, we were keen to work even closer with such a highly regarded club and the new agreement will allow us to perfectly recreate and feature Emirates Stadium and the club’s many stars within PES 2018.”